Monday, July 3, 2017

Right now, summer has descended, New York City is baking in the heat, and all I can think about is escaping to the seaside with a glass of rosé in hand. While the beach is merely an hour away on the A train, sometimes it's just easier to conjure refreshment by popping over to the wine shop and grabbing a bottle of rosé from Provence!

While great rosé is made all over the world, Provence is where they've mastered the style so many folks find appealing; lots of minerality, good fruit, and a crisp finish. Typically made from the traditional southern French grapes Syrah, Grenache, and Cinsault, these are also generally very affordable wines.

I, for one, encourage rosé consumption year-round, but it certainly is enjoyable to cool off with a glass of rosé in the summer heat. And the fact that these are "red wines in a white wine's body" make them amazing to pair with a range of foods, from lobster to a cookout hot dog.

At a recent tasting sponsored by Vins de Provence, "The Taste of Style," I enjoyed a lovely array of the following rosés (there were some whites and reds from the region as well, and I couldn't help but include one DELISH white below.) Enjoy!

As the mercury continues hovering at the top of the thermometer, believe me, I'll be drinking a lot more rosé. Keep your eyes here for more posts on delicious rosés from all over the world! Post in the comments with your favorite rosés, from Provence or elsewhere. and share the wealth!

Sunday, March 19, 2017

Frequent readers know I adore good wine from atypical locales. And die-hard Wineaux already know that Hungary is home to one of the world's most exotic, revered dessert wines: Tokaji. ("Toe-kai.") But not a lot of folks know that the main grape of Tokaji, Furmint ("foor-mint,") is absolutely delicious when vinifed as a dry table wine.

Its position under the radar is because there simply wasn't much dry Furmint in the world-wide marketplace until recently. But Hungarian producers are getting their wares out in the U.S. more and more each year, and you should seek some out ASAP — do not pass go, do not collect 200 forint — especially because 2017 was named the "Year of Furmint" by both the SOMM Journal and the Hungarian Ministry of Agriculture.

THIS IS THE ACTUAL YEAR OF FURMINT, YOU GUYS. COME ON!

I sampled some amazing Furmints at the Council General of Hungary in New York City recently, and spoke with some passionate winemakers about this versatile grape.

Tamás Kis, Owner and Winemaker of Somlói Vándor, poured his winery's eponymous offering, the 2015 Somlói Vándor Furmint, which had a bright nose of florals and straw. On the palate, it showed notes of quince and lime, and had a charming acidic structure with very good length. Tasty! If you are a Sauv Blanc fan, this one's for you. ~$24.

Also on the lighter side was the2012 Zafír Dűlő from Erzsébet Cellar. The woman next to me compared it to a white Burgundy, quite the compliment, though I found it lacking a bit of character to agree. Still, it showed yellow apple and lemon on the nose, and was very clean and minerally on the palate. ~$31.I went "Lady Gaga" over the 2015 Degenfeld Furmint Dry, with its heady floral nose and excellent fruit/acid balance. It was rich-seeming though light and quaffable, with straw, florals, white peach, and a not-overly acidic finish. A great summertime sipper at ~$18. Tamás Kovács, owner and winemaker at St. Donat Estate, poured his 2015 Marga Furmint Selection Estate Bottled. ("Marga" is the Hungarian term for "marl," which is a soil type related to limestone.) This had a soft nose, but its white floral perfume blossomed in the mouth, accompanied by bright and tangy acid. ~$22.Mr. Kovács came prepared with a wonderful map of Hungary on his iPad, on which he could zoom in to illustrate the volcanic and flatland topography of the major Hungarian wine-growing areas. He also had pictures of his small, round aging vessels. When I asked if they were concrete, he turned up his nose a bit; "This is not concrete. Concrete is the past." I stood corrected; these vessels were porous ceramic stone units, which breathe like oak barrels do, but are totally neutral. Furmint started to show its spicy side in the 2015 Kvaszinger Hatalos Furmint, along with ginger and melon on the nose. This had integrated acidity and a leesy richness, with a touch of bitterness and long length. ~$27.

The Spice Girls themselves (what's with the music references today?!) would be overwhelmed by the 2015 Béres Lőcse Furmint Selection Estate Bottled. The nose had rich rome apple and candied melon, but it was a bit schitzo, because in the mouth it was SO dry and SUPER spicy!! Once I got over the difference in expressions, I kept returning to it and wrote, "wow" in my notes. ~$27.Furmint often gets compared with Chenin Blanc, and I definitely got that similarity with the 2013 Vision Furmint from Holdvölgy. (This was the only 2013 poured, which is too bad, as it Mr. Kis proclaimed it "an excellent vintage.") This had an inviting floral nose with a candied melon presence, flirty and tasty ripe fruit on the mouth, with high acidity. ~$24.

The last dry Furmint of the day was the 2012 Barta Öreg Király Furmint, which had a slightly maderized nose (like a light Sherry,) with a funky barnyard feel and overripe lemon, but on the mouth it was light, lemon-peel acidic, with straw on the finish. I found this really interesting; earthy, but bright. And it also shows that this grape definitely has aging potential. (This one is for you Chardonnay fans.) ~$39

Finally, there was one sweeter style poured; the 2012 Basilicas Szamorodni Tokaji. "Szamorodni" means "as it comes," and refers to the condition of the grapes when picked. This is not like Sauternes, where multiple passes are made throughout the vineyards and individual grapes at optimal ripeness are picked each time; here the bunches with varying degrees of ripe berries will get picked "as it comes." Because of the topography and climate of Tokaji, the dessert-wine grapes will often be affected by botrytis (the "noble rot" that also hits Sauternes, and adds an amazing, distinctive flavor to these wines,) and this showed some botrytis on the nose, with peach, apricot, and vanilla. With about 66 grams per liter of sugar, it was definitely sweet, but not at all cloying, as the amazing acidity keeps it fresh. ~$NA.

As with many unusual varieties/locales, you will have to work a little harder to seek dry Furmints out. But the incredible quality of the wines I sampled above suggest that they will be the darlings of somms and merchants before too long. Furmint is quite reflective of its terroir, so that explains the incredible range of experiences, from super-bright and tangy to richer, rounder, earthier flavors. It's hard to know exactly what you will get from each wine by merely glancing at the label, but grab whatever bottle you can find and start experimenting. I think you might end up freaking out over Furmint yourselves.

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

A lot has been said about the 2012 vintage Brunello, but does the wine live up to the hype?

Full disclosure: I am not the world's biggest Brunello di Montalcino fan. I often find the younger wines unbalanced and overbearingly structured, and many BdMs with some age have lost their pleasant fruit and are just too austere for my palate.

But at a recent tasting sponsored by The Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino, I was introduced to a range of 2012s that absolutely sparked my interest. I'm sure the vintage isn't the only contributing factor to my change-of-heart, but it seems to be the foundation.

It certainly wasn't an easy growing season in Montalcino in 2012. With a dry start, snow and rain during important growth stages, and a HOT summer, yields were down. But the important weeks leading up to harvest were practically perfect.

BdM is a DOCG wine -- the highest-rated level of governmental standards of control. These are high-class wines, although their popularity has only risen to world-wide levels over the last 50 years or so.

3D map of Montalcino, from the Consorzio presentation.

The area of Montalcino is located in Tuscany, Italy, and is basically a square, rising to a slightly off-center peak like a pyramid. Soils differ in the main four quadrants of the region -- a combination of sand, clay, and limestone. We tasted wines from all parts of Montalcino, grown on all soil types, at various elevations. (As is required by DOCG regulations, all of these wines are 100% Sangiovese.)

So what REALLY made the Minx reconsider her thoughts on Brunello? As Jeff Porter, Beverage Director for the Batali/Bastianich Hospitality Group and one of the leaders of the tasting, said, these are "very pretty" wines. They were elegant and approachable, and in every case I found the potentially troublesome acidity and tannins inherent in Sangiovese totally well-balanced. That structure makes these long-lived, and also incredible food wines, so I just might have to pop out and grab a few bottles, for now AND later!